Supervisor: Highway dept. account low

April 11, 2013

BROADALBIN - Town Supervisor Joe DiGiacomo said Tuesday the town Highway Department's checking account is low on cash, and money for it will need to be borrowed from the general fund.

According to DiGiacomo, the current checking account for the Highway department is down to about $2,900, while the savings account is at $5,800. DiGiacomo said the bills from the meeting total to roughly $28,000.

However, DiGiacomo said the problem is not a budget crisis, but merely a cash flow crisis.

"It's just a matter of the anticipated revenues have not come in along with the anticipated expenses at the same rate," he said.

DiGiacomo said the town's sales tax revenue is expected to come in sometime next week, which will be about $190,000 to $195,000, with $120,000 of that sum going to the Highway Department. Other expected revenues are a small payment from the village for sand and salt, roughly $10,000.

Until then, DiGiacomo said, the town will borrow money from the general fund, which has roughly $500,000 dollars, totalling roughly $30,000.

DiGiacomo said they will have to pay it back eventually, with an interest rate of 1 percent.

"Our purchasing policy was a little more liberal last year, and we are trying to tighten it up," he said.

DiGiacomo said he feels the department should shop around.

"I think we [overpaid] for some products that we have purchased," DiGiacomo said. "We don't have control directly, that is why we tightened up our purchasing policy so we would have more control over it."

DiGiacomo said last year the purchasing plan was about $3,000. This year, it has been reduced to $1,000.